russell



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

l8. RUSSELL, ELECTRIC PIRE ABM.

No. 337,872. Patented Mar. 1'6, 1888.

By his Harwell/8, 53W Lw l(No Moi'el.) Y3 Sheets-Sheet 2. S. RUSSELL.

ELECTRIC FIRE ARM. No. 337,872. Patented Mar; 16. 1886.

INV-ENTOR: im Y. By his ./Ittorizeys, v

WITNESSES:

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. S. RUSSELL. ELECTRIC FIRE ARNL No. 887,872. Patented M81. 18, 1888..

hw fa S y l l n rino SAMUE RUSSELL, OF BROOKLYN, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN ELECTRIC ARMSVAND` AMMUNITION COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 337,872, dated March 16, 1886.

Application Sled May 27, 1885. Serial No. 166,828. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be `it known that I,SAMUEL RUSSELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New `York, have invented certain new and useful ductors for eliecting the ignition of the powder when an electric current or discharge is passed through them from or through the gun. Such a cartridge is shown in my Patent N o. 307,071, granted October 21, 1884.

The particular.. species of electric gun to which my present invention pertains is that wherein the cartridge isiired by bringing into contact with it amovable tiring-pin or electrode actuated by the pulling of the trigger or by other firing device. A gun of this character is disclosed in my Patent No. 307,070, dated October 21, 1884. i The particular gun therein shown is a shotgun of the type having an immovable breechv block and barrels that are broken down-to open the breech.

My present invention has more particular reference to rifles, magazine-guns, and machine-guns, where the barrels are immovable and the breech-blocks are moved to open the breech.

The genericfeature of my present invention consists in a movable electrode working through or upon a movable part of the gun, which part is movable to permit the insertion of the cartridge, and acts as a breech block or stoppen, or `to support or lock the breechblock and the electrode moving with such part, but havingzitself an independent movement relatively thereto, in order to close the circuit and tire the cartridge.

My invention further consists of certain specific features,which will be hereinafter set it tothe Hotchkiss gun. Figs. 1.0 and 11 showl it as applied to the so-called Phoenix gun; and Figs. 12 and 13 show it as applied to the Gatling machine-gun.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a Hotchkiss magazine-rifle, modified in. accordance with my inventiou,with its stock partly in section. v Fig. 2 is a longitudinal midsection of the breech portion of the same on a larger scale. Fig. 3 is a. side view of the firing-pin removed with. the cooking-piece in section; and Fig. 4 6o is a fragmentary view, showing thesafety-lock.

Referring, tirst, to these figures, let A designate the stockof the gun; B,the barrel; C, the breech portion or receiver; D, the bolt;

E, the movable breech-block, which in this gun is known as the bolt-head, being carried with the bolt; F, the tiring-pin; G, the cocking-piece; H, the mainspring or firingpin spring; M, the magazinetube, and T the trigger. These parts, and all other parts of 7o the gun, are all of the construction usual in the well-known Hotchkiss magazine-gun, except in the particulars hereinafter specified.

In the stock of the gun is placed a galvanic battery, J, or battery-cell, which is by preference of cylindrical forni, so as to it in a cylindrical socket boredinto the breech from the butt. The elements are inclosed in a sealed cup or case of insulating material, and the opposite poles or electrodes emerge from this case, preferably at opposite ends thereof. One pole is connected by a wire, a, to the magazine-tube M, or to any other metallic part of the gun, through the medium of which it makes connection with the `barrel or breechblock. TheY other pole is connected by a wire, b, with the trigger. The trigger is T-shaped, the same as in the ordinary Hotchkiss gun, having a front arm or Sear, c, and a rear arm or stop, d. The latter is fitted with an insulated electrical contact-piece, e, which is connected in any convenient way with the wire b, as shown in Fig. 2.

The tiring-pin and cooking-piece are somewhat changed, as shown in Figs. 2aud 3. The firing-pin F is bored through longitudinally, or is made tubular, and in its bore is fitted a metal rod or electric firing-pin, I, which Ishall hereinafter refer to as an e1ectrode. This electrode I, which is preferably of hard metal, roo

l extends through the firingpin F from end to end, projects slightly beyond the front end of the latter, and is inclosed and isolated from the ring-pin by an insulating tube or sheath, f.

' tion is to bore longitudinally through the axis of the cooking-piece, insert an insulatingtube and a metal screw, g, which touches the electrode I, and to bore vertically through the head and insert an insulated pin, h, which touches theHscrew y, and the head of .which projects beneath and formsa contact-piece to make contact with the contact-piece'e on the trigger. A suitable electric cartridge being placed in the barrel, (either manually or on being fed there from the magazine,) and the bolt D being pushed forward and its locking-handle turned down, as in the usual operation Aof the Hotchkiss gun, the gun is ready to be fired.l

The firing-pin F and cooking-piece G are retracted, and held so by the trigger-sear,while the mainspring H tends to force them forward. Thus the front end of the electrode Iis drawn back out of contact with the cartridge, and the electrode itself' is out of the circuit because of the break between the contact-pieces e and h. When the triggeris pnlled,its sear c moves downward and frees the cooking-piece, while its rear arm, d, moves upward and brings together the contacts e and h. The cookingpiece and til'iugpin are instantly shot forward by the spring, and the front end of the elec trode I' touches the center of the cartridge. The current then passes from the battery J through wire b, contacts e h., and electrode I, Y

into the cartridge, and thence through the bar rel and intervening metal parts of the gun to the opposite pole of the battery. Thus the electric cartridge is exploded. When the trigger is released, its reararm, d, drops and separates the contact-pieces e from h, thus breaking the circuit. The contacts eh are brought together in tiring, usually before the cockingpiece has completed its forward movement, so that h rubs over e, and both are kept bright.

When the firing-pin ,is cocked, as shown in Fig. 2, the circuit` is broken in two places between the electrode I and the cartridge, and between the contacts h and e. Hence it is ob- 1 vious that if the firingpin can be locked in this position it will be impossible for the electric current to pass through the cartridge, and the gun cannot be fired. This is the' safety condition'of the gun, and is accomplished by providing a lock for either the ring-pin or the trigger, preferably the latter. When the lock is turned on, the trigger cannot be pulled, and the electrode cannot make contact with the cartridge until the lock is firstturned olii For this purpose the usual construction of trigger-lock for the Hotchkiss gun may be used, as shown in Figs. l and 4. L is the locking-lever, which is shown off in full lines in Fig. 1, and on in dotted lines, while in Fig.

tLit is shown on in full lines. 4It is held in either position by the spring k. When the locking-lever is turned up,i as shown in Fig.

'4, its locking-tooth l comes against a tooth, i,

on the trigger and locks the latter; but when it is turned down it enters a space or groove, j, permitting the trigger to move. Any other convenient way of applying such a lock may 4be substituted for the one shown.

It will be observed. that the gun hereinabove described differs from that shown in my said Patent No. 307,070 in this respect, among others, thatthe electrode (or electrical tiringpin, as'it is cailed in said patent,) is moved forward by the :tension of being released by the trigger, instead of being pushed forward by the triggerand retractedV vby a spring.

'I have shown as a modification a gun operating on the latter principle in Figs. 5 and 6, which also illustrates the application of my present invention to a bolt-gun of the Lee Fig: 5 isa side elevation of the gun with its stock in section; and Fig. 6 is a lougitudinal mid -seclion of the breech portion thereof on a larger scaie.

Referring to these figures, the letters A, B, (l, D, E, F, G, H, M, and Tdesignate substantially the same parts as in the iigu res first described. The magazine M is a removable cup applied from beneath the breech and retained by a catch, K. The breech-block E andA bolt D are both one piecer The firing-pin F is tubular, and is fitted with the insulated electrode I, as before described,`the rear end of the latter extending downwardly through the a spring upon its- ICO cooking-piece G, and terminating ath on the f bottom thereof. The cooking-piece G is or may be integral with the pin F, and the mainspring H is arranged to press backwardly against them, tending to eject them rearwardly from the bolt D. This ejection is prevented by a projection, m, on the cocking-piece entering a bayonet-joint groove, n, 1n t-he bolt D. The under side of the cocking-piece has no Sear, but is formed with a rearward shoulder, r, against which the upper arm of the trigger T may press to push the-cooking-piece and ringpin forward, The trigger is a'simple lever pivoted so far forward that its upper arm normally lies back, as shown, beneath the cooking-piece, so that the bolt may be freely retracted; but when it is pulled it rises and strikes the shoulder r and pushes it forward. When the cocking-piece is thus pushed forward,its contact h moves over and touches the contact-piece e, which .is shown as being an insulated pin connected by wire `b with the battery J. This connects the electrode I with the battery, and upon the front end of the electrode touching the cartridge the gun is fired. The safety-lock in use on the Lee gun' may be employed, or any other suitable lock may be provided. v

IIO

Figs. 7, 8, and 9 show a method of applying pressed forward by the trigger. Fig. 7 is a longitudinal mid-section ofthe breech portion. Fig. 8 is a transverse section thereof on the line 8 8 in Fig. 7; and Fig. 9 is an oblique elevation of the bolt removed, viewed in the direction of arrow 9 in Fig. 8.

The cocking-piece is omitted, and the tiringpin is inclosed whollyin the bolt, being pressed backward by the spring, and having a toe, p, extending downward through a slot, q, `in the bolt, into position to be touched and pushed forward by the lupper end, e, of the trigger.

VThe tail of the electrode I extends down over this toe ath, being exposed. The trigger is a simple lever pivoted below the magazine-tube, its upper end, e, being insulated and connected to the wire b, leading from the battery. When the trigger is pulled, this end first touches the exposed portionh of the electrode, thus putting the latter into connect-ion with `the `battery, andthen pushes the firing-pin forward bodily until the front end of the electrode makes contact with the cartridge and the latter is exploded. 'lhe safety-lock is somewhat modified, the `lever L, Fig. 1, being fastened to an oscillating lbar, l, Fig. 7, which is deeply notched for the reception of the trigger when pulled. To lock the trigger, this bar is tu rned throughv an. arc of one hundred degrees or more. The firing-pin is not locked, as if it should move forward it would be out of contact with the end e of the trigger, and consequently out of circuit. The rear portion of the slot q extends one-quarter around the bolt D, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, in order to allow the bolt to be turned up before being retracted, and in order to allow it to be retracted the slot is extended forward, as shown at q. When the bolt is fully retracted, the end of q strikes the end e of the trigger. To remove the bolt the trigger must be pulled and held while the bolt isbeing withdrawn. Its end iS thus brought so low that it clears the bolt.

The so-called Phoenix gun (shown in Figs. 10 and l1) is atype of gun having apivoted breech-block moving laterally, to which my invention is applied. Fig. 10 is a longitudinal mid-section of the breech portion with the breech closed; and Fig. l1 is a transverse section thereof on the line 1l l1 in Fig. 10, with the breech open.

The breechblockE is pivoted at E', Fig. 1l, and turns up and over laterally to openthe breech. The hammer is removed, the trigger rlis converted into a simple lever, and the breech-block is made deep enough to receive a firing-pin, F, with its retractingspring. ln the firing-pin F is the insulated electrode I, as before described, both its ends projecting Abeyond the ends of the pin F. The trigger bears an insulated plate, e, in connection with the wire b, and when the trigger is pulled this plate touches the exposed rear end of the electrode and presses the latter and the firing-pin I have introduced Figs. 12 and 13 to show one way in which my invention may be applied to machine-guns, the Gatling gun being the one shown. Fig.\12fis a plan in the nature of a development of the working parts of the gun, showing the cylindrically-disposed barrels and bolts as though they were disposed in a straight row. Some of the barrels and bolts are shown in section. Fig. 13 is an enlargeddetached View of a single firing-pin removed.

A battery, J, or other source of electricity is provided, its opposite poles being connected, respectively, to the rear barrel-plate (or other metallic part) and to a contact-spring. e. The several bolts (or` locks,) D D, are unchanged, except that their front ends or breech-blocks have a tubular insulation for the passage of the electrode I. The ringpins F F are made tubular and fitted with w electrodes I I and intervening insulating tubes f f, as clearly shown in Fig. 13. The head of each pin is in two parts, the outer portion or cap,h,being connected to the electrode I and insulated from the inner portion, 1p. The cap hprojects beyond the head p, so that when it is in contact with the spring e, Fig. 11, the head p is clear thereof. The mainsprings H H need not be so strong as heretofore, and the firingpins need not be retractedso far; hence the retracting-rib7 R is placed farther forward than in the ordinary construction. The contact-spring e is fastened to the stationary camring S at the point where the rib R terminates, being insulated from the rirg. The operation is the same as in the ordinary Gatling gun, except that electric cartridges must be fed into the hopper. As the barrels revolve each successive bolt engages a cartridge, thrusts it forwardinto the barrel, its firing-pin being retracted at the same time, and when thefiring position is reached the 1 firing-pin moves beyond the rib R andlies forward. In sodoing its cap h rubs over the contact-spring e, thus bringing the electrode I into circuit, and

when the front end of the electrode strikes the cartridge the current is conducted into the latter and it is fired. At the nextinstant the lateral movement of the tiringpin carries its head h off the side of the spring e and the ICO IIO

IIS

current is interrupted.: My invention may be applied to other machine-guns in similar or equivalent manner.

The different constructions of gun herein shown and described have been selected as being typical; but my invention is by no means confined to them, being applicable to all or nearly all known constructions of guns having movable breechblocks.

In another application for patent executed by me this day I have shown a modified form of my present invention applied to a gun having a vertically-vibrating breech-block, known as the SpcncerRepeating Shot Gun.

It will be observed that in Figs. 1 to 4 I have shown my invention as applied to a gun having a movable breech-block, E, the electrode I being carried by and movable in a separate part, D, which supports and locksthe breech-block. In Figs. 5 to 9 this movable part and the breech-block -are integral. Figs-l0 and l1 the electrode is borne by the breech-block. In Figs. 1 to 9 and 12 and 18 theelectrode is borne by a part which moves back from the barrels in order to open the breech. In Figs. and 11 it is borne by a part which moves laterally, and in the Spencer repeater (shownin my said other application) it is borne by a part which moves vertically.

One important feature of my present inven-l tion `'as compared with the construction shown in my saidPateut No. 307,070, is that the electrode I is inclosed for nearly its entire length in an insulating-sheath, which is again inclosed in and protected by the tubular metal firing-pin F, which latter takes all the strain and is subjected to all the wear. ,In my said patent the electrode (or electric firing-pin) is a naked pin sliding through a fixed insulationa construction which entailed wear upon both the pin and the insulation.

In, my presentimproved construction the insulation is not used as a bearing, and is protected from wear.

I claim as my invention-- l1. In a breech-loading gun having an immovable barrel and a breechblock or other moving part whichmoves to open the breech, the combination, with such moving part, of

Van insulated electrode mounted therein and moving therewith,and capable of being moved independently thereof to lire the gun, and a source of electric energy connected at its one p terminal with the said electrode and at its opposite terminal with the barrel, substantially as set forth.

2. In a `breech-loading gun having an immovable barrel and a breech-block or o/ther moving part which moves to open the breech, the combination, with such moving part, of a metal firing-pin mounted therein and moving therewith, and capablel of being moved independently thereof, an electrode inclosed within said firing-pin and projecting beyond the frontend thereof, a tubular insulatingsheath interposed between said electrode and ring-pin, and a source of electric energy in connection at its one terminal with said electrode and its opposite Vterminal in connection with the barrel, substantially as set forth.

3. In a breech-loading gun having an im movable barrel and a breech-block or other moving part which moves to open the breech, the combination, with such moving part, of an insulated electrode mounted therein and moving therewith, and capable of being moved independently thereof to re the gun,-a source of electric energy with its opposite terminals iu connection, respectively, with the barrel and with said electrode, and a normal break in said latter connection, which is closed upmovable barrel vand a breech-block or other moving part which moves to open the breech, the combination, with such moving part, of an insulated electrode mounted therein and moving therewith, and capable-of being moved independently thereof to tire the gun, asource of electric energy with its 4opposite terminals in connection, respectively, with the barrel and with said electrode, and a safetylock adapted, when applied, to prevent the moving forward of said electrode, substantially as set forth.

5. In a breech-loading gun having an im-` movable barrel and a breech-block or other moving part which moves to open the breech, the combination, with such moving part, of

an insulated electrode mounted therein and moving therewith, and capable of heilig moved independently thereof to (ire the gun, a mainspring tending to force said elect-rode forward, a trigger having a sear for holding said electrode retracted, and a source of electric energy having its opposite terminal in connection, respectively, with said electrode and with the barrel, substantially as set forth.

6. In a breech-loading gun, the combination of a bolt adapted to move toward and from the barrel, an insulated electrode borne thereby, a mainspring tending to force said electrode forward, a trigger having a sear adapted to engage said electrode and hold the same retracted, a contact-piece adapted to makey contact with said electrode when the latter is shot forward, and arranged to be out of contact therewith until the trigger is-pnlled, and a source of electric energy having its opposite terminals connected, respectively, to

said contact-piece and to the barrel of the gun,

substantially as set forth.

7. In a breech-loading gun, the combination of abolt adapted to move toward and' from the barrel, an insulated electrode borne thereby, a mainspring tending to force said electrode forward, atrigger having on its front arm a scar adapted to engage the said electrode and hold the same retracted, a contactpiece on the rear arm of the trigger adapted, whenthe trigger is pulled, to make contact with the rear ofthe electrode, and asource'of electric energy having its opposite terminals connected, respectively, to said contact-piece and to the/barrel or equivalent part of the gun, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

SAMUEL RUSSELL.

Witnesses:

ARTHURNG. FRASER, E. B. BOLTON. 

